{Postcards from Venice}

Gondolas at San Marco piazza

Buongiorno! 

It's been a busy winter season (and a long while since my last post), but it was not without some fun.  This March I spent a week in Venice, Italy -- an urban labyrinth of canals and commerce, selling glass goodies galore.  I started my trip by exploring the city's many museums, galleries, and churches.  Situated in the famed San Marco piazza, the San Marco Basilica (circa 11th century), Byzantine in style with its ogive arches and gilded glass mosaic designs, features the most beautifully patterned marble, echoing the city's fascination with water.  Located in the city's outlining neighbourhood of Cannaregio, Chiesa di S. Maria Assunta I Gesuiti, a Jesuit church from the 18th century, stands tall along the quiet, canal-side back-roads.  From the outside, it resembles a Roman temple.  From the inside, it an operatic stage, made entirely out of marble furnishings and stone-inlay walls. (Unfortunately, I was not allowed to take any pictures of these dramatic interiors.)

In addition to touring the city's many artistic and religious venues, I also managed a quick gondola ride, under the Rialto Bridge and through the city's waterways - a historic transport tradition that is now a tourist trap, but still a surreal experience.  At an osteria near the Rialto, I quenched my thirst with the refreshing Venetian cocktail -- Spritz -- made up of Aperol, prosecco, and soda, garnished with a blood-orange slice and a giant green olive.  A delizioso treat at the end of a tour!

Until next post...Ciao!  Jenn


San Marco Basilica and the Doge Palace

Cannaregio's back-streets




Chiesa di S. Maria Assunta I Gesuiti

 

The Rialto Bridge, as seen from a gondola

 

Spritz cocktails and veggie panini



Venice port at twilight

Hotels
Palazzo Abedessa - located in the quiet neighbourhood of Cannaregio.

Starwood Splendid Venice - centrally located in between San Marco piazza and the Rialto Bridge.

UNA Hotel Venezia - located in the quiet neighbourhood of Cannaregio.

Restaurants
Il Refolo - an excellent, and reasonable priced, pizzeria, with a large, outdoor canal-side seating area - perfect for a romantic evening or night out with friends.
Campo S. Giacomo de l'Orio - Santa Croce 1459

Ostaria Boccadoro - a small restaurant, sprinkled with art, serving mainly seafood.
Campo Wildmann - Cannaregio 5405/a

Shops
Le Perle - sells beautiful Venetian beaded jewelry in 3 locations near San Marco and the Rialto Bridge

{Be My E-Valentine}

Roses are red;

Violets are blue.

Snail mail is special,

but e-Valentines are too!

This year Kate Spade has reissued a line of specially crafted e-Valentine's Day cards for your posting convenience.  Here's to spreading the love this holiday! 

XOXO,  Jenn

{Snowmen Sunday}

After last weekend's London snowstorm, I snapped a few pics of the snowmen scattered throughout Hyde Park -- a tribute to the city's creativity and whimsy.  Enjoy the winter wonderland!

{Postcards from Corsham Court}

Greetings!

Last week I had the pleasure of day-tripping it to the small English town of Wiltshire. There in the heart of Austen-country, Corsham Court, a house built during the Elizabethan era remains home to an 8th-generation Lord, as well as to a plethora of peacocks running about the gardens, and welcomes vistors throughout the year. Within its massive walls hangs an extensive collection of old master paintings, ranging from the 16th to the 19th century. The collection's sheer size impressed me, but its inclusion of a work from one of the highest regarded woman Renaissance artists, Sofonisba Anguissola, truly amazed my eyes.  In addition to the stately home, an Elizabethan bath-house resides on its grounds in a tribute to its English history.  I highly recommend a romp through the countryside, toward Corsham Court, when you're feeling the itch to leave the buzzy streets and galleries of London's city center.

Yours,  Jenn

{Leonardo Where Art Thou}

This weekend I attended the Renaissance art event of the season - the National Gallery's exhibition Leonardo da Vinci: Painter at the Court of Milan, the first-ever exhibition of Leonardo as a painter.  Among the masses, I marveled at Leonardo's The Lady with an Ermine (1489-90), a captivating portrait of a Renaissance beauty, and witnessed the newly attributed Christ as Salvator Mundi (1499), a fascinating depiction of the Christian saviour.  What impressed me most though was his The Virgin of the Rocks I (1483-85), a Louvre loan, hung mirrored to his The Virgin of the Rocks II (1491/2-9, 1506-08), a National Gallery possession.  Such an arrangement demonstrates the artist's mindset in reworking his piece, as well as the progression of the time period's stylistic trends.

The exhibition, on until Feb 5, 2012, has sold out of its advanced-sale tickets.  However, day-of tickets are still availble for those brave enough to endure the long AM queues.  Should you prefer to avoid venturing out into the winter chill for hours of waiting in line in the early hours of the morning, alternatively, you can experience pieces of the exhibit from the comfort of your own computer via the below link. Enjoy!

Leonardo da Vinci: Painter at the Court of Milan | An Online Look into the Exhibition

{Winter Blues}

Each January, after the holiday season ends, I pack away its presence for next December.  I gently wrap up all my ornaments in bubble wrap and newspaper, placing them in various boxes, marking each as fragile.  I de-string my tree of its lights.  Then, with a lot of help from my husband, I cart my tree out of my apartment, into the street, with all the other sapling rubbish.  Its putrefied branches shed needles throughout my living room, foyer, and apartment stairwell – which I swept and vacuumed up fastidiously.  This annual post-holiday routine consistently leaves me feeling a little blue, not to mention, with damaged nails. 

In an effort to beat my winter slump and mani-mess, this year I immersed myself in blue.  I treated myself to a classic manicure and pedicure at Notting Hill’s Coco Nail Bar.  There, in the comfort of their plush, massaging chairs, I sipped a cup of tea while pampering my hands and feet with a scrub, file, massage, and polish with OPI’s Yoga-ta Get This Blue!.  It seems that being blue isn’t so bad after all.

{Happy New Year!}

Wishing you a lovely new year... Happy 2012!

Yours,  Jenn